NSF Invests $35M in Research, Seed Grants to Support Biomanufacturing Sector; Sethuraman Panchanathan Quoted
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NSF Invests $35M in Research, Seed Grants to Support Biomanufacturing Sector; Sethuraman Panchanathan Quoted

The National Science Foundation has invested more than $35 million in new research projects to advance the domestic production of biological materials and create cybersecurity and sustainability approaches for the biomanufacturing sector.

Ten projects will each receive up to $3 million in research grants over four years through the Future Manufacturing program for fundamental research and workforce development and 11 projects will each get up to $500,000 in seed grants to develop multidisciplinary teams and generate preliminary results relevant to their proposed research grant proposals, NSF said Thursday.

“NSF will continue to push the frontiers of what is possible — advances such as the manufacturing of biological therapeutics, manufacturing in space and underwater, and optimizing manufacturing with AI — to improve our nation’s prosperity, competitiveness and quality of life,” said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan.

To date, the agency has invested more than $137 million in Future Manufacturing projects to overcome scientific, technological, economic, educational and social barriers to advancing manufacturing capabilities for U.S. companies.

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HJF’s Corey Hastings Discusses Career Background, Leadership Values & GovCon Business Challenges
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HJF’s Corey Hastings Discusses Career Background, Leadership Values & GovCon Business Challenges

As chief financial officer, senior vice president and treasurer of The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., Corey Hastings is responsible for more than $500 million military health-focused government contracts and grants.

Hastings recently participated in an interview with the Potomac Officers Club, in which he reflected on his career background, discussed his leadership strengths and shared his insights on the business side of the government technology landscape.

In this excerpt from the interview, Hastings describes his approach to empowering his team:

“While I do value self-awareness, especially in terms of weaknesses and limitations, I choose to support people and organizations by expanding the applicability of their strengths while mitigating – not constantly emphasizing – their weaknesses. I do this because I have seen talented people from all levels of organizations succeed beyond expectations when given the opportunity. I take every opportunity I can to listen to the stories of nurses, doctors and medics of all types who made tremendous sacrifices to care for wounded warriors in the field. Because they work hard in challenging environments, it inspires me to work hard in the challenging environments I face, and hopefully inspire others to do the same.”

Read the full Executive Spotlight interview on the Potomac Officers Club website to learn more about Hastings’ leadership style.

Interested in participating in your own Executive Spotlight interview? This brand-building opportunity — and numerous other benefits — are available exclusively for Potomac Officers Club members. To browse our membership options and discover which one is right for you, click here.

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SBA Names 15 Members of New Invention, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Advisory Committee; Isabella Casillas Guzman Quoted
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SBA Names 15 Members of New Invention, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Advisory Committee; Isabella Casillas Guzman Quoted

The Small Business Administration has named the 15 inaugural members of the Invention, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Advisory Committee, a newly established group that will provide the agency with information, advice and recommendations to enhance U.S. startup and small business innovation ecosystems.

The members bring to the advisory committee diverse experiences, work backgrounds and perspectives and will serve a two-year term, SBA said Thursday.

“The distinguished members of this newly launched advisory committee will serve as an important resource with insights and recommendations to help us build policies and programs that foster American ingenuity, innovation, and economic competitiveness,” remarked SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman.

Philip Gaskin, executive fellow and strategic advisor to the CEO at Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, will serve as IIEAC chair, while Julie Lenzer, chief innovation officer at Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute, will work as vice chair.

To further explore thee IIEAC and the other committee members, click here.

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Sen. Warner Seeks Update From OMB on Legally-Mandated IoT Policy Review
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Sen. Warner Seeks Update From OMB on Legally-Mandated IoT Policy Review

Sen. Mark Warner, D-VA, on Sept. 26 sent Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, a letter reminding her of the need to complete a review of her agency’s policies regarding the security of internet of things devices as required by law.

The review aims to ensure that OMB’s IoT policies are aligned with the cybersecurity guidelines endorsed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the office of Sen. Warner said Tuesday.

The OMB review and the issuance of NIST guidelines are mandated by the Internet of Things Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2020, which Warner sponsored.

NIST complied with the legal requirement in 2021, when it published Special Publication 800-213A, titled, “IoT Device Cybersecurity Guidance for the Federal Government: IoT Device Cybersecurity Requirement Catalog.” OMB was supposed to complete its review within 180 days afterward.

In his letter to Young, Warner expressed concern and disappointment over OMB’s lack of “significant progress” in the conduct of its review. The lawmaker also asked Young to answer within 60 days several questions to determine whether the office is taking the appropriate steps to fulfill its obligation.

These inquiries include how far along OMB is in its IoT policy review, what policies the office has issued to ensure compliance with NIST guidance and which agencies have yet to align their policies with the NIST guidelines.

Warner concluded his letter by applauding OMB for its work in strengthening the cybersecurity of the federal government.

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Kemba Walden Says National Cybersecurity Strategy Aims to Build More Resilient Digital Ecosystem
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Kemba Walden Says National Cybersecurity Strategy Aims to Build More Resilient Digital Ecosystem

Kemba Walden, acting national cyber director, said that the U.S. National Cybersecurity Strategy aims to create a more defensible and resilient digital ecosystem to reinforce the nation’s defenses against cyber threats.

“Defensible means that defenders, not attackers, are positioned to greatest advantage. And this is because we’ve developed systems that are secure by design, where security is intrinsically baked in, not tacked on as an afterthought,” Walden said during a Western Hemisphere Cyber Conference hosted by the Department of Homeland Security.

The next step is to build resilience, so as to mitigate and quickly recover from catastrophe without lasting systemic effects.

Walden said the third priority is ensuring the U.S. digital ecosystem is “aligned with our values,” explaining that technology does not generate values but “reflects the values of its designers and users.”

The inaugural Western Hemisphere Cyber Conference convened cyber leaders from local and foreign governments to discuss cybersecurity challenges and identify areas of collaboration.

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NASA’s Aprille Joy Ericsson Nominated to Serve in New DOD Assistant Secretary Post
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NASA’s Aprille Joy Ericsson Nominated to Serve in New DOD Assistant Secretary Post

Aprille Joy Ericsson, a more than three-decade aerospace engineer at NASA, has been nominated by President Joe Biden to serve in a new assistant secretary position at the Department of Defense, according to the White House.

In July, DOD established three new assistant secretary of defense positions in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to replace the deputy chief technology officer role. The ASDs will focus on science and technology, critical technologies and mission capabilities.

“The establishment of these roles within Research & Engineering better positions our team to execute upon our mission of preserving our nation’s technological edge, now and into the future,” said Heidi Shyu, under secretary of defense for research and engineering and three-time Wash100 Award winner.

If confirmed, Ericsson will bring to DOD expansive experience gained from working at NASA since 1992. She currently serves as new business lead at the space agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center Instrument Systems and Technology Division, where she drives the establishment of government, academe and industry partnerships on research and development efforts.

Her NASA career also includes time as an instrument project manager and an attitude control systems analyst.

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Multi-Agency Report Examines State CIOs’ Use of AI, Automation to Build Up Resilience
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Multi-Agency Report Examines State CIOs’ Use of AI, Automation to Build Up Resilience

A report by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers, IBM and the Center for Digital Government has found that state CIOs see a direct connection between resilience and information technology modernization and look at innovation as an enabler of resilience.

CDG, NASCIO and IBM interviewed 21 state CIOs on the topic of resilience between July and August for the report titled Preparing for Future Shocks in State Government and found that they are advancing the adoption of artificial intelligence and automation to protect their infrastructure from cyberthreats, improve operational efficiency and address talent gaps, according to a joint release published Thursday.

“Responsible AI and automation are essential elements of state leaders’ IT modernization strategies as they strengthen resiliency,” said Frank Attaie, General Manager for IBM’s U.S. Public Market. “This roadmap will help state CIOs as they extend their capabilities and agility in responding to future disruptions and we look forward to collaborating with them.”

According to the study, state government IT leaders are advancing other strategies to improve fortification, such as adopting a multicloud or hybrid cloud approach, collaborating with partners to improve disaster recovery and business continuity and upskilling and reskilling employees.

The research uncovered the top threats facing state CIOs: cyberattacks and fraud, natural disasters and climate change, insufficient workforce talent, legacy systems and technical debt and economic uncertainty and budget constraints.

The report also explored how state IT officials play a key role in enterprise resilience, IT resilience, workforce and employee resilience and personal resilience.

When it comes to IT resilience, CIOs are experimenting with generative AI and other emerging technologies to understand their potential impact and benefits.

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Carlos Del Toro Highlights 3 Navy Initiatives to Drive Rapid Capability Development, Adoption
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Carlos Del Toro Highlights 3 Navy Initiatives to Drive Rapid Capability Development, Adoption

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro said the Department of the Navy is advancing three initiatives to complement its current efforts in the innovation space and chief among them is the establishment of the Disruptive Capabilities Office.

“This new organization will push the bounds of rapidly delivering warfighting capability though the innovative application of existing and new systems, and harnessing today’s exponential growth in technology,” Del Toro, a 2023 Wash100 Award recipient, said Thursday during his speech at the Naval Research Laboratory’s anniversary ceremony at the Pentagon.

He noted that the DCO will advance rapid prototyping and experimentation and work with the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory’s Rapid Capabilities Office to deliver on DON’s contribution to the Replicator initiative.

In August, Kathleen Hicks, deputy secretary of the Department of Defense and a three-time Wash100 awardee, announced that the Replicator initiative intends to counter China’s military buildup by fielding thousands of attritable, autonomous systems across multiple domains within the next 18 to 24 months.

Another initiative Del Toro mentioned at the event is the creation of the DON Science and Technology Board led by Richard Danzig, former secretary of the Navy.

He said the newly established board seeks to bring together thought leaders to help identify tech platforms for rapid deployment across the fleet, and went on to cite the launch of a pilot program within the Program Executive Office Integrated Warfare Systems.

“This effort will explore how our PEOs can operate under a new portfolio-centric construct to increase the rate of capability development and fielding over our present timelines, and will do so in a manner that leverages pre-existing authorities,” Del Toro said of the pilot program.

“The lessons we learn throughout this pilot program will enable all of our PEOs to better address the emerging threats and requirements under their respective purviews,” the Navy secretary added.

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Gen. Paul Nakasone: NSA Creating AI Security Center
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Gen. Paul Nakasone: NSA Creating AI Security Center

Gen. Paul Nakasone, director of the National Security Agency and a seven-time Wash100 awardee, said NSA is forming a new center to manage the development and integration of artificial intelligence systems to ensure the secure adoption of AI tools across the defense industrial base and national security enterprise, DOD News reported Thursday.

Nakasone, who also serves as head of U.S. Cyber Command and chief of the Central Security Service, said the AI Security Center will advance the development of best practices, risk frameworks and evaluation methodology, as well as consolidate NSA’s AI and security-related activities.

“The AI Security Center will work closely with U.S. Industry, national labs, academia across the [intelligence community] and Department of Defense and select foreign partners,” he said at an event on Thursday.

The Army general cited the role of NSA in addressing AI-related opportunities and challenges and the need for the U.S. to keep its competitive edge in AI.

“AI will be increasingly consequential for national security in diplomatic, technological and economic matters for our country and our allies and partners,” Nakasone noted.

DOD Releases Updated Strategy for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction; Lloyd Austin Quoted
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DOD Releases Updated Strategy for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction; Lloyd Austin Quoted

The Department of Defense has released the unclassified version of its updated strategy outlining its strategic approach to countering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction globally.

The 2023 Strategy for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction details how the Pentagon will align its authorities, operations, partnerships and investments based on current and emerging CWMD challenges and threats, DOD said Thursday.

It focuses on four priorities: defend the homeland from WMD attacks; deter the use of WMD against the U.S. and its allies; enable the joint force to prevail in the chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear environment; and prevent new WMD threats.

“This Strategy reinforces other guidance provided in the Nuclear Posture Review, the Missile Defense Review, and the Biodefense Posture Review by clarifying the role of the CWMD mission within the Department’s overall approach to integrated deterrence and conflict,” said Lloyd Austin, secretary of defense and a three-time Wash100 awardee.

The CWMD Strategy designates China as a pacing challenge, Russia as an acute threat and North Korea and Iran as persistent threats.

The document is the first update to DOD’s WMD strategy since 2014.

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